"[So and so] is still alive?!"

August 26, 2009 9:38 PM

Dominick Dunne has died. Dominick, father of Griffin and Alexander, husband of Joan, has passed away at the age of 83.

In addition to writing in the True Crime and crime fiction genres, he also did a little work in the movie and TV industry. Entertainment Weekly's obituary describes him as a telegenic raconteur. Dunne died at home. He had been receiving stem cell treatment for bladder cancer. .

posted by crataegus (12 comments total)

I think you're confusing him with his brother, John, who was married to Joan. You're right that he's dead, however.
posted by You Should See the Other Guy at 9:45 PM on August 26, 2009

Yes, Joan Didion is his sister-in-law. Was. I confess to thinking about her rather than Dunne himself when I heard the news-- she's lost her husand, her daughter, and now her brother-in-law all in the last few years.
posted by jokeefe at 9:46 PM on August 26, 2009

Yes, I was confused. Doh.
posted by crataegus at 9:48 PM on August 26, 2009

And btw, what's with the "so and so's still alive" post title? Between that and the mistake in the FPP, not to mention the tags-- "schadenfreude"? Really?-- perhaps somebody else wants to give this particular obit post a try?
posted by jokeefe at 9:48 PM on August 26, 2009

The So and So's Still Alive is a quote. Schadenfreude was what he wrote.
posted by crataegus at 9:49 PM on August 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

If the post is going to stay, could some kind admin please change "husband" to "brother-in-law"?
posted by crataegus at 9:59 PM on August 26, 2009

John or Dom, he's nonetheless Dunne.
posted by pracowity at 10:02 PM on August 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

I heard about this earlier, and figured it was a sign that I should reread A Season In Purgatory.

I always really enjoyed Dunne's writing, loved the thinly-veiled-fiction aspect of his novels and loved the salaciousness and self-insertion of his work for Vanity Fair. I'll miss his namedropping, high-energy, tragedy-tinged work.
posted by padraigin at 10:13 PM on August 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

Jesus Christ, Summer of 2009! How many famous people do you plan on killing?
posted by lunasol at 10:15 PM on August 26, 2009

So misinformation, no ".", and lots of confusion...

Have you ever read any of Dunne's work? Controversy seems like a fitting tribute.
posted by padraigin at 10:20 PM on August 26, 2009

So, I'm gonna just get this going with a:

.
posted by desuetude at 10:27 PM on August 26, 2009

.
posted by ob at 10:27 PM on August 26, 2009